The U.S. State Department announced on Tuesday it was evacuating all non-essential personnel from Egypt due to the mass unrest surrounding the ongoing protests against President Hosni Mubarak.
Spokesman Philip Crowley said the diplomatic service would continue to help U.S. citizens who need assistance leaving Egypt. He warned, however, that "flights may be disrupted and transport to the airport may be disrupted due to the protests."
Some 200,000 opposition supporters gathered Tuesday on Cairo's central Tahrir Square for a major demonstration seen as the biggest challenge so far to Mubarak's three-decade rule. The opposition predicted the protest would involve a million people.
The unrest, which has already claimed the lives of at least 150 people and injured some 4,000, is likely to turn even more violent if clashes break out between Mubarak supporters and the protesters.
MOSCOW, February 1 (RIA Novosti)
